Does The Next Gen Camry Need To Be Evolutionary Or Revolutionary To Stay At the Top?

The only thing that the Camry needs to be is a Toyota. The rest will take care of itself.

It needs to not be boring

Just curious though if they are so reliable why would you need to keep buying the same car over and over. Wouldnt the first or second one have been fine? Or for that matter if your just buying a new car every 3 to 4 years or less why does it matter if "long term" the car is so reliable? Doesnt make sense, if thats the only reason your buying a new car is to just get a new car every 3 or years so than get somethign better

@bmwdrvr, are you serious?

"Just curious though if they are so reliable why would you need to keep buying the same car over and over. Wouldnt the first or second one have been fine?"

So you're saying the only reason people buy the same car over and over is because their current ones become unreliable. If their old cars were reliable, they would never buy another car again. In other words, people don't really like shiny new cars with improved safety and technology.

"if your just buying a new car every 3 to 4 years or less why does it matter if "long term" the car is so reliable?"

There is a thing called "resale value", which is usually higher if the car has a reputation for reliability. Also, cars usually don't come with an exact expiration date on their reliability. If there was a car that was extremely reliable for 3 years and then went down the drain, your question might be valid. Except it would have a crappy resale value and we'll be back to square one.

The two problems with the Camry going too bold:

1. Trendy looks fade, and fickle buyers move to the next trend. We'll see if this holds true for the Sonata. Recent grumblings on the internets suggest the backlash may have begun. Classic styles stay consistent (eg Camry's stay at the top) and even rise when compared to a sea of change (eg Malibu's ascent).
2. Wild styling in this segment does not always pay off. For every Sonata, there's a counterpoint slow selling boldly styled car. How many Optimas do you see? (In my opinion, the best looker out there.) What happened to sales of the Mazda6 when it got bulging fenders and a smiley face?

So Camry has to play it safe. The new Passat looks like an older, classicly styled Avalon (or gods forbid, an Impala). The new 'Bu looks good, the Fusion looks good. Other than oversized taillights, the Altima is a simple 2 box formula. These are all safe designs, no better or worse subjectively than the new Camry.

Enough comparing the exterior to a Sonata. They are completely different, and they are supposed to be. In the end the Camry will win. Hands down. Because conservatively (and handsomely) styled or not, it will be a better car.

Until the Prius family dethrones them all.

1. Trendy looks fade, and fickle buyers move to the next trend. We'll see if this holds true for the Sonata. Recent grumblings on the internets suggest the backlash may have begun. Classic styles stay consistent (eg Camry's stay at the top) and even rise when compared to a sea of change (eg Malibu's ascent).

- Trendy looks fade and so do the boring designs. The Camry's design isn't a "classic" LOL, more like cookie cutter.


"2. Wild styling in this segment does not always pay off. For every Sonata, there's a counterpoint slow selling boldly styled car. How many Optimas do you see? (In my opinion, the best looker out there.) What happened to sales of the Mazda6 when it got bulging fenders and a smiley face?"

- That's cool. The camry is a boring looking car for people who don't care how thier car looks. I do not base my car buying decisions on which one sells the most. Do you?

Playing it safe means that the car will be a boring lifeless appliance. Harldy the stuff of legends. Toyota's are lifeless appliances. The KIA and Hyundia Lineups are much more exciting. Selling tons of cars to people who don't care about cars doesn't make the cars anymore desireable.

- Trendy looks fade and so do the boring designs. The Camry's design isn't a "classic" LOL, more like cookie cutter.

Boring designs don't fade; that's where you are completely wrong.

- That's cool. The camry is a boring looking car for people who don't care how thier car looks. I do not base my car buying decisions on which one sells the most. Do you?

That question does not speak to the topic. The topic is not what styles we want to see in our driveways or on the street. I wish every car were as stunning as the Optima. But the question is, "what sells?" The Sonata's surge has been essentially an anomaly based on a perfect storm of aging class leaders, low price, tsunami and a trendy style. Sales this high won't last.

-Playing it safe means that the car will be a boring lifeless appliance. Harldy the stuff of legends. Toyota's are lifeless appliances. The KIA and Hyundia Lineups are much more exciting. Selling tons of cars to people who don't care about cars doesn't make the cars anymore desireable.

An opinion that also does nothing to advance the argument of whether Toyota should have been more bold in the Camry restyle. It just tells me what you like. BFD.

It needs to be able to compete with cheaper alternatives. The American economy is going to be stuck in a sluggish state for the next 7-8 years or so. After that, it is questionable if the average American consumer will be able to afford a midsize family sedan. It seems more likely that compacts will be what consumers will buy. Toyota will have to be able to compete with much cheaper alternatives. People can laugh at Hyundai and Kia, but the fact of the matter is that they are more affordable that Toyota and will therefore drawn a diminished American consumer.

Other then Hyundai and Kia the conservative look still ages well.To me the new Camry looks like an overgrown Corolla. However as stated the current Camry has remained at or near the top of the heap even though it's competition is more visually appealing. In spite of it's troubles and the earthquack Toyota still has a strong customer loyalty. Personally I would never buy another Toyota product again.But frankly that means absolutely nothing. If I were in the market for a mid size sedan I would look at the Passat due to its Euro suspension and it's available diesel. I also like it's conservative Euro styling. I'm also liking the Kia Optima. It is a very attractive sedan and less swoopy then a Sonata.

For ex: compare a 2003 Altima to a 2003 Camry. Those highly styled taillights on the Altima look lame compared to the 2003 Camry. Most early 2000 Altimas look like they're falling apart. And for now, '11 Camry 3.5 SE…no matter how much u love the maxima or Mazda 6 or Accord V6…they cannot out accelerate the Camry (maxima CVT = lame). & rear end on current '11 SE looks less goofier than those guys. Current Mazda 6 & Maxima will look fail in 8 years, but not the simple looking Camry

That's exactly what we tried with '10 Accord 6MT coupe vs my '11 V6 SE - tried 4 times & we even switched drivers/cars to see if we were getting 1st gear right on the accord - we have video. Sorry Camry won all 4 times

Revolutionary.

They need to make a Camry people want to buy instead of their competitor's offerings.

To me, I agree with alot of others in that the new Camry loooks alot like the Corolla, only larger on the outside appearance. The interior pic I saw does look to be high quality and style for the segment. Still, it looks boring to me. They haven't annouced any new features yet, so I can't comment, however with Lexus as the higher end brand, I don't see them adding Lexus type options, or people wouldn't buy the ES for example. There has to be some differentiation between the two.

I have owned more recently a 2003 Honda Accord EX-L navi model. it was a good car, appliance like the Camry with by todays standards now, basic needs with exception of the Navi and sunroof it you count that.

Recently, I bought a 2011 Kia Optima SX in pearl white with the panoramic sunroof, dual ventilated front seats, memory seats, heated rear seats,LED gauges (Lexus-like) and too much more to mention here. My point is, this car is more comparable to features of a higher end car, like say Acura than the brand it is supposed to compete with being Honda and Toyota with the features never seen before in this segment, not to mention the incredible warranty of 5 yr 60,000 bumper to bumper and 100,000 drivetrain. Typically, Honda and Toyota have 3/36 and higher end like Acura and Lexus have 4/48 or 5/60. This car trumps the Accord and Camry in every way. Style, performance (I have the 274hp turbo), features std and available, value for your money, and warranty. I am very happy with this car. I get compliments and looks everywhere I go, gets respectable gas mileage for having a lead foot at times (avg 26 mpg), and just a great all around car and value!I think Toyota and Honda are going to be in trouble for a long time unless they step up their game in style and now features. We haven't even touched on the longer warranty.